How Little Mix Turned Their 'Glory Days' Into an Album

Little Mix has always been a living example of girl power, but the British gals may have outdone themselves with their fourth LP, Glory Days.

In the year since the group released its previous album, Get Weird, every Little Mix member has been through ups and downs (whether together or individually), experiences that they weren't just able to channel into songs -- they were able to create an album they loved in record time. Billboard got a chance to catch up with the group's Perrie Edwards and Leigh-Anne Pinnock ahead of the big release, finding out why this album is so special to them and their hopes going into the Glory Days era.

"With Get Weird, it just didn't seem to be working. Like we couldn't get the right songs, it just wasn't jelling," Pinnock explains. "And this time around, I feel like we just had so much to write about it just happened. It felt natural."

Agreeing with Pinnock, Edwards piggybacked off the "natural" comment, mentioning how honest everyone was in the songwriting sessions, which resulted in a different concept and production process than they've ever had before. There were times when the writing hit a wall, though. Little Mix's solution? Fro-yo.

During one of their last recording sessions, Edwards explained that the writer they were working with suggested a frozen yogurt run when it seemed like everyone was struggling with their creativity. "So we ordered an Uber, jumped in the car, and stayed at the mall for about half an hour just eating frozen yogurt," laughs Edwards. Upon returning with full bellies, "We wrote one of our favorite songs on the album in like 10 minutes after that," Edwards says. "I guess it was the sugar rush."

A few months after Glory Days hits stores (Nov. 18), Little Mix is set for a trek across North America in support of Ariana Grande, an opportunity for which the girls are extremely excited and grateful. They have yet to figure out the set list for their opening gigs, but Edwards hopes it includes "Touch" -- a sexy, danceable track with a bit of a "Hips Don't Lie"-vibe -- while Pinnock is eager to sing heartbreaking ballad "Nobody Like You" because of its powerful vocal moments for each member.

But whatever the girls choose to perform from Glory Days, power moments are bound to happen no matter what. The album is chock-full of them, particularly in songs like the "boy bye" declaration "F.U.," feisty beat-dropper "Power" and anthemic single "Shout Out to My Ex."

Although there are tinges of heartbreak and struggles on the album, the overall feeling that resonates from Glory Days is that the Little Mix girls have turned the past year's hardships into success -- coming out stronger, both musically and emotionally, because of it.

"The reason that we called the album Glory Days is because we're gonna look back on this time and say that it was the glory days, the best time of our life," Edwards says. "Hopefully our fans can share that with us."

Adds Pinnock, "We've heard a lot of people say that we've changed their lives with our music. That's what we set out to do."